Aunt Barbara’s Old-Fashioned Fudge

This Old-Fashioned Fudge recipe is so easy to make in under 20 minutes! Made from scratch with condensed milk, marshmallow, you’ll love this rich chocolate fudge.

I believe almost each of us has one recipe that identifies us. For my mom, it was Nordy Bars and Almond Roca for my Nana. For my friend Anne, it is her Aunt Barbara’s Old-Fashioned Fudge.

As long as I have known Anne, I have known about her fudge making holiday tradition. The second the calendar switches over to December 1st, the famous recipe comes out and the chocolate making commences. I think for her, the act of making it surpasses the sheer joy of eating it. For each batch she makes, she gives away 50-75% to friends, family, and coworkers. By January 1st, the pan goes away, not to be seen for another 11 months.

I decided to try my hand at making her famous recipe this year. Once she sent it to me, my first instinct was “this is it”? Just a few ingredients and very simple instructions for that magical pan of joy she makes?

Aunt Barbara passed away from cancer when she was only in her 30’s. Anne asked her uncle for the recipe after her aunt passed away, and makes it each and every year. She would make it for her cousins when she visited and they would eat warm fudge, hug, and cry.

The sugar content is high, and with most recipes, I would adjust it and put something in there that was nutritionally redeeming. It’s great to hack and adapt recipes at times, but in this instance, the history of this fudge leads me to make it as Anne and Barbara would have made it together.

I would invite you to try a batch of this simple fudge today. Find someone you love and make it with them. Making fudge is more than just making fudge; it is also making memories.

Pour into the buttered dish and smooth to distribute evenly. Allow to cool a bit to set before cutting. Store at room temperature.

Recipe Notes

The original recipe calls for marshmallow cream. I didn't have any on hand and used homemade marshmallows in my first batch and store-bought mini marshmallows on my second batch. They both worked great and were considerably cheaper than marshmallow cream.

For my second batch, I added 1 tsp of hazelnut extract to try to make "Nutella Fudge". The hazelnut flavor wasn't very strong, but it added an amazing depth of flavor to the batch.

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That is the exact recipe (minus the hazelnut extract option) that I grew up with. If memory serves, it is called Fantasy Fudge and was printed on the jar of marshmallow fluff. Side note…I grew up in Springdale, AR…aka the chicken capital of the world…there are also Cargill plants there that made feed. The smell made by the boiling evaporated milk and butter nauseates me because it (to me anyway) smells exactly what it smells like near the feed plants. However, the end product of melt in your mouth fudge is worth the smell memories that get triggered by the making of it.